India's international carrier, Air India, says it has replaced its steel and silver-plated cutlery with plastic.

A spokesman for the state-owned airline ,Jitender Bhargava, told the BBC that in compliance with restrictions set by the US Federal Aviation Authority, Air India has introduced plastic knives and forks on all flights going to the United States and Britain.

The decision follows reports that in last week's plane suicide attacks on New York and Washington, the attackers used knives and box cutters.